A certain Hogwarts professor of runes

Chapter 696 Forgery

Wizards prepare to land on the moon!

The wizard says there are relics of ancient wizards on the moon!

The wizard is preparing to search for the ruins!

As soon as these three explosive pieces of news spread, they instantly left everyone dizzy and disoriented, like a whirlwind.

Wizards were skeptical, but The Quibbler was the first to praise the idea. Xenophilius Lovegood, the editor-in-chief, had already published a similar article, which was about a wizard who claimed to have flown to the moon on the Six Stars and brought back a bag of moon frogs as evidence.

At the time, nobody believed the news, but he brought it up again as evidence. Perhaps in the future, descriptions of the Moon Frog will appear in Muggle newspapers, after all, Luna has gained many loyal readers with her unique writing style.

Unlike the uproar in the wizarding newspapers, the non-magical world showed a rare collective silence on this matter, without the imagined ridicule—that a wizard actually wanted to go to the moon by his own power and believed that someone else had already done it!

Please, how much effort did scientists put in to get to the moon? The sweat of an entire generation, plus the final straw that broke the camel's back for a superpower.

Two days ago, this outlandish idea would have drawn countless condemnations and ridicule, and would have been seen as proof of the wizards' backwardness and overestimation of their abilities.

But now the situation is different, and the impact of the wizard's first visit to the Houses of Parliament is gradually spreading.

Newspapers and television programs bombarded them with lengthy reports and endless broadcasts, constantly reminding them: it wasn't a dream. The conversation naturally turned to: if wizards could change a country's weather in an instant, why couldn't they go to the moon?

The illumination spell unleashed by thousands of wizards working together produced a stunning effect.

Ordinary people were simply incredulous and shocked by the spectacular sight, but organizations and government agencies that viewed wizards as their enemies were completely unable to sleep.

The wizards demonstrated the ability to "manipulate the weather," but the government's advisors and strategists did not think that was all they could do. They felt a strong sense of threat. Today they were just putting a big light bulb over their heads, but what if the negotiations broke down tomorrow and it turned into something else?

This concern is not unfounded, because wizards do indeed have a type of spell they call weather spells...

Just two weeks ago, some members of parliament and public figures raised objections, expressing their concerns, directly or indirectly, about the lack of legal control over wizards. Now, these voices have disappeared. Those members of parliament who hoped to gain support from voters in their jurisdictions by hyping up the threat of wizards have been sternly warned by their respective parties: Shut your mouths or go back to your hometown!

At this juncture, Rita Skeeter, having obtained inside information, published an article roughly titled "Magic is the Science of Wizards," and her self-interviewing style was quite surprising. However, this didn't stop it from attracting attention. Multiple media outlets reprinted and excerpted parts of the article, with several paragraphs being repeatedly mentioned:

"I had the chance that countless journalists dream of, to dance with Mr. Felix Heap at the Queen's social ball," Skeeter said with a smile. "He danced wonderfully; it was a truly beautiful experience, and I'm sure he trained very hard behind the scenes."

So countless people around the world either patiently or with great interest read through her lengthy and ambiguous description of the ball before finally getting to the main point.

"Yes, I definitely asked him a question; it's a seasoned journalist's instinct. Needless to say, there's not much time to polish your ideas on the spot, so it was a rare opportunity—I asked a seemingly vague but essential question: What is the biggest difference between the upbringing of wizards and ordinary people? You know I'm not referring to magic..."

"As a professor at the only magic school in Britain, Mr. Hyp is quite qualified to speak on this matter, and he happened to use science as an example."

"As we swayed and danced on the dance floor, in the ambiguous atmosphere, he whispered the answer in my ear: the importance of imagination. He further explained that many great wizards created practical spells that would be passed down through generations, purely by instinct. They might have been engaged in a particular task for a long time, harboring an urgent desire; or it might simply be a pleasant afternoon, lying in a rocking chair, when suddenly inspiration struck. Throughout the process, the wizard's keen intuition for magic played a huge role."

Rita Skeeter was outspoken and had become considerably bolder. She used suggestive and provocative language to fuel the imagination, but when other reporters pressed for details, she remained silent. She feared that Heap might come knocking on her door in the middle of the night and burn her to ashes. She continued to share the insights she had heard—

"Magic is turning the impossible into the possible; it is the combination of imagination and magic."

"All the headmasters of Hogwarts have generally followed one principle: never try to stifle the imagination and creativity of young wizards. One headmaster unknowingly made this mistake by establishing harsh laws and regulations at the school. He alone made more than a thousand prohibitions, and thus became the most unpopular headmaster in history."

"Of course, I don't mean that wizards are a bunch of crazy, incoherent, and illogical people. Everyone has a different personality. I'm referring to their attitude towards magic. Just like mathematics and logic are undoubtedly the most brilliant jewels in the crown of science, but as far as I know, many scientists have quirks..."

"Scientists build a complete and vast system in their minds by learning knowledge, and use this system to research all kinds of amazing results; while the process of wizards learning and digesting knowledge is the process of stimulating their own potential, and they themselves are shaped by magical knowledge."

"In summary, scientists are the carriers of scientific knowledge, while wizards are the products of magical knowledge."

Wizards are born with the most fundamental power in the magical world—magic—and their entire lives are dedicated to learning how to wield it. Theoretically, every wizard has the potential to become Felix Heap, Dumbledore, Grindelwald…

……

The moon appeared and disappeared among the clouds; it was still a few days away from being a full moon, so it wasn't quite round. A group of wizards stood in the courtyard, gazing at Felix in the center.

"Are you sure?" Ms. Burns asked repeatedly, confirming, "The Muggle government has provided data simulating the space environment..."

"Don't worry, I've made ample preparations," Felix said calmly. "If anyone in the wizarding world can do this, I'm definitely the best candidate." As he spoke, a layer of fine magical runes covered his face.

Hermione, Harry, and Ron, standing nearby, all thought of the night Voldemort returned: Professor Hyp first demonstrated his ability to transform into runes. A newfound confidence welled up within them.

However, this ability is actually too taxing, and Felix would avoid doing it unless absolutely necessary.

Dumbledore was skilled in many kinds of magic, but his greatest skill was Transfiguration. He could even transform human bodies into all sorts of magical creatures, which seemed incredible to other wizards, but to him it was just a "trick." The ultimate form of Dumbledore's Transfiguration was to restore his strength to its peak. In fact, under the effect of Transfiguration, he could transform small parts of the human body and unleash even greater combat power.

Felix had heard about it from Harry, but he still didn't think he could handle Dumbledore in that state.

Felix's greatest skill undoubtedly lies in ancient runes.

The "Transformation Runes" technique is the perfect demonstration of his abilities and knowledge in this field. Even just transforming his skin into ancient runes allows him to endure in space far longer than the average wizard, not to mention his other magical abilities.

With the Mind Hut, ancient runes, and Level 7 Iron Armor Spell appearing simultaneously, Felix suddenly appeared to everyone else like a large, colorful butterfly.

He tossed the silver pocket watch to Hermione. Since it was his first time trying this, he couldn't bring Varen along. He was more at ease on his own. Once he figured out the effects of space and the lunar environment on wizards, he could develop a series of targeted spells—just like how he transformed different emotions into Patronus.

"Fifteen minutes," Ms. Burns said somewhat nervously. "In fifteen minutes, we will activate the door key on you. If you successfully land on the moon, you can cancel it. The door key is bidirectional."

Felix nodded. The atmosphere became serious; everyone knew it was time. Felix glanced at the crowd, then turned and disappeared from their sight. Everyone knew that a major magical experiment had begun.

They could only stay in the courtyard of Hogwarts and wait for the outcome.

"This isn't like the professor. If he were truly prepared, he would have been to the moon several times by the time he announced the results. But clearly, this is the first time he's done this," Hermione said, sobbing.

"Muggles and wizards are about to negotiate," Ms. Burns said hesitantly.

"We must trust Felix; he has performed many miracles," Professor McGonagall said in a low voice, trying to reassure him.

……

high in the air.

Felix floated along, glancing behind him. Thick clouds obscured his vision. He checked his magic one last time, then leaped into the air. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in the vast, boundless starry sky.

"How do you feel?" The surroundings were empty, but a voice transmitted to his mind through his consciousness.

Felix wasn't surprised; he clearly already knew. He tentatively moved his hands and feet, then carefully sensed his body. "It's very cold, the wind is strong, and there's something else eroding the magical barrier—probably cosmic rays… but it's not a big problem; they haven't touched my skin."

This is another trump card, one of the sources of Felix's confidence.

His clone magic.

The magic he learned from the magical creatures of the Arctic differed from the illusions used by ordinary wizards—Felix split in two, and as long as the magic was active, he could be seen as two entities. Felix transformed one of these entities into a phantom in his mind's eye, just as he had once transformed the mandrake pots and soil in the school greenhouse into simple lines.

If problems arise and conventional magic fails to help him survive in space, or even ancient runes become ineffective, he can still "waste" a body and travel through space without restraint. As long as he reveals the phantom hidden in the Mind Hut at the last second and cancels the clone spell, it can serve as a replacement.

The wonder of magic is undeniable.

Felix began his journey through the vast starry sky, repeatedly using Apparition. Unlike his near-instantaneous disappearances during battle, each use of this spell while traveling took a little time, perhaps only a few seconds. However, when the number accumulated to two or three hundred times, it inevitably added up.

Almost ten minutes passed. Felix sat in space, the distant Earth appearing as a tiny, patterned black glass sphere floating in a nebula emitting a pale white light. Looking back, the moon was already close at hand.

Half a minute later, Felix stood on the surface of the moon.

"It's like being hit by a levitation spell," Felix muttered silently. He didn't rush to explore, but instead tested some common spells on the spot, the effects of which remained largely unchanged. Then, the blue pin on his chest lit up.

It was Ms. Burns who activated the door key.

Felix casually extinguished the light from the key and fell into thought. If the time spent testing on the way was taken into account, it took him about twelve minutes, and once he became more proficient, this time could be further reduced to about seven or eight minutes.

If his Apparition could cover a wider area, it might only take three or four minutes… This was undoubtedly good news. Felix began to cast a spell—a giant bubble head charm.

The bubble head curse, which resembled an overturned fish tank, shattered as soon as it appeared.

"Tsk, I knew it wouldn't be smooth sailing." Felix wasn't surprised. He pulled out the Book of Runes, and soon, a rune spell modeled after the Bubble Head Spell appeared. Two years had passed since that transformation, and Felix felt significant progress every now and then, but most importantly, the ancient runes showed extremely strong adaptability.

"Perhaps Grindelwald could do it too," Felix mused. Even among archmages, different people have different areas of expertise. Grindelwald was particularly adept at manipulating subtle changes in magic; he could combine the properties of the Bubble Head Charm with those of other spells to create a habitable environment in space.

After some time, a hemispherical magical barrier was completed. He then added various protective spells, while adjusting the temperature, light, and pressure to suit the situation. Finally, Felix drew a large amount of air from his emerald ring, and a temporary shelter was erected.

Felix dispelled the magic on his body, took a deep breath, and the orb of light from the Illumination spell cast a soft glow.

He slowly closed his eyes, pretending to be a wizard from hundreds of years ago—which was easy; he had visited many famous wizarding sites, and the pace of life for wizards was always slow, with many buildings still bearing traces of hundreds or even thousands of years ago, dating back to the time when the despicable Helbo was active.

The light-colored lunar soil on the surface was turned up, while the dark soil and various tiny glass particles and rock fragments solidified into various shapes. The porous, clumped, pale yellowish-brown rocks were scorched, melted, and shaped in the flames. A few minutes later, Felix realized that there wasn't enough oxygen.

"...That's normal. Ancient wizards wouldn't go completely bare-chested."

Felix carefully examined the crumbling ruins before him, gaining some insights into how to build houses on the moon. He then took out vegetables from his ring, crushed them, and mixed them with the lunar soil.

Finally, he held in his hands soil mixed with vegetable leaves and two containers he had just sculpted—one resembling a flowerpot and the other a bowl or plate, both engraved with ancient patterns.

"The most crucial step is yet to come."

Felix's expression was solemn. A wisp of time energy floated from his ring, coiling around the floating lunar soil and container... This time energy came from the Department of Mysteries of the Ministry of Magic, and some remained after resolving the drawbacks of Miss Granger's long-distance time travel. It seemed to have been prepared specifically for this scene.

The soil and container gradually turned a deep, antique color, and Felix smiled with satisfaction.

"What is false, and what is true? The fact that I'm standing here is true."

Listing the colossal lies he has told recently, using Grindelwald's special identity is one, and using the illumination technique to "light up" Britain can only be considered half a lie due to favorable timing, location, and people. But the one he is telling now is definitely another complete lie. He is extremely audacious, trying to create history out of thin air.

Felix didn't intend to forcibly separate wizards from non-wizards; it was unrealistic and unnecessary. His idea was to get wizards (and non-wizards) to focus their gaze on the vast starry sky. If wizards had ever lived on the moon, what about even further afield? Like Mars?

At least Felix won't stop exploring.

At Hogwarts, everyone waited anxiously. Two hours passed, and the expressions on their faces changed in turn, from calm to worry, solemnity, anxiety, despair, and finally only a sliver of hope remained.

Harry thought to himself how lucky Hermione was to be there, constantly reassuring the students around him who were just as anxious as he was.

A soft sound suddenly rang out in the air.

Felix appeared unharmed. He smiled slightly, glanced around, dusted off his clothes, and said calmly, "My landing point shifted on the way back, so I had to—"

A figure rushed over. He was about to dodge, but hesitated for a moment after seeing who it was, and stayed where he was.

It was Hermione. She leaned on his shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Next time, please take me with you next time," she said, her voice trembling.

Felix's expression froze.

(End of this chapter)